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Interim analyses in clinical trials: Classical vs. bayesian approaches
Author(s) -
Berry Donald A.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
statistics in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.996
H-Index - 183
eISSN - 1097-0258
pISSN - 0277-6715
DOI - 10.1002/sim.4780040412
Subject(s) - interim , bayesian probability , interim analysis , sampling (signal processing) , bayesian inference , inference , clinical trial , statistics , econometrics , sample size determination , computer science , mathematics , medicine , artificial intelligence , archaeology , filter (signal processing) , computer vision , history
This paper concerns interim analysis in clinical trials involving two treatments from the points of view of both classical and Bayesian inference. I criticize classical hypothesis testing in this setting and describe and recommend a Bayesian approach in which sampling stops when the probability that one treatment is the better exceeds a specified value. I consider application to normal sampling analysed in stages and evaluate the gain in average sample number as a function of the number of interim analyses.